The Duenna: A Comic Opera

Richard Brinsley Butler SheridanProject Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

3.8

Word count: 92K words
Chapters: 10

Summary

Project Gutenberg was the first provider of free electronic books, or eBooks. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971 and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today.The Duenna: A Comic Opera by Richard Brinsley SheridanAuthor: Sheridan, Richard Brinsley, 1751-1816,Language: English, Class: PR: Language and Literatures: English literature, Release Date: Oct 1, 2004

Editor's review

This is the script of Sheridan's comic opera The Duenna, a classic text of eighteenth-century British drama, conveniently available in the Project Gutenberg public-domain electronic edition. The work treats love, guardianship, and family arrangements in comic mode, with witty dialogue and clear character relationships, making it suitable for understanding the stage traditions of British opera and drama of the period. As a script, it reads differently from a novel: readers must reconstruct the scenes from dialogue and stage directions. Readers interested in theater history, eighteenth-century British literature, or English language learning can read it through as a short text, attending to the rhythm of songs and dialogue. Comparing it with Sheridan's other plays makes his comic technique clearer.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Students of English literature who need to read eighteenth-century dramatic texts
Theater enthusiasts who want to understand the script form of comic opera
English learners who wish to encounter classic dramatic dialogue
Readers studying Sheridan or the history of British drama

Not a good fit for

Readers who only read long novels may find the script form difficult
Beginners who need detailed annotations and stage background will find limited notes in the public-domain electronic edition
Readers completely unfamiliar with eighteenth-century British social context

Reading tips

Read the whole play first, clarify the characters and main conflicts, then revisit key scenes
Read the dialogue aloud to feel the comic rhythm and the cadence of the songs
Consult materials on eighteenth-century British theater history to understand comic opera stage conventions
Read alongside Sheridan's other plays to observe his character setup and language style

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

FAQ

Is this a novel or a script?

This is a comic opera script, containing dialogue, songs, and stage directions. Readers must reconstruct the stage scenes in their minds rather than follow a novelistic narrative.

Do I need to know the plot background first?

You need not read a detailed plot summary first, but understanding the guardianship, marriage, and property arrangements common in eighteenth-century British comedy will make it easier to grasp the characters' motives and the humor.

How difficult is the English?

The language is eighteenth-century English, and some expressions differ from today's usage, but the dialogue overall is brisk. English learners may use an annotated edition or read a plot summary first.

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About the author

Richard Brinsley Butler Sheridan Author · Irish · 1751–1816

Richard Brinsley Sheridan (1751–1816) was an Irish-born playwright, orator and Whig politician, born in Dublin. His masterpiece The School for Scandal (1777) is regarded as one of the finest comedies of manners in the English language. He also wrote The Rivals, The Critic, St. Patrick's Day and The Duenna, and long managed the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane. Six of his works are held here, including comedies, an opera and a one-act farce; they centre on gossip, marriage and witty dialogue among the upper classes, with playful language and ingenious plots that have deeply influenced later English comedy. Public information on his life is limited, so this note relies only on the facts held here.